Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Remember seeing that old cedar chest in Grandma’s house when you were growing up. Well aside from being a functional piece of antique furniture, chests have a rich history from earliest times as storage containers. Some of the earliest chests have their history with the amazing pharaoh’s of Ancient Egypt, where they were used to store golden treasures as well as the documents of the time. In modern times however, one of the largest and best known manufacturer of cedar chests was the Lane Furniture Company.

Edward Hudson Lane first founded the company in Altavista, Virginia in 1912. However, the Lanes were unsure of what success they would have selling chests, so they originally named their company The Standard Red Cedar Chest Company. Situated on a junction served by the Virginian and Southern Railways made it easy for the cedar chests, and later other furniture, produced by lane to be sold in many more cities and places outside of Virginia. It is interesting to note that although they had contracted with the federal government to produce pine ammunition boxes in their infancy, the height of their cedar chest days came during World War II.

In the 1920’s, Lane, whose tag line had been, “The gift that starts the home,” began advertising their cedar chests as “Hope Chests,” where young ladies could stockpile clothing and small furnishings in anticipation of a future marriage. Many of the advertisements at the time featured soldiers with their betrothed and other patriotic gestures. Later, Lane became known for and is still known for their quality furnishings and accent pieces. Mr. Lane passed away in 1973 and the last cedar chest to roll off their production line was manufactured in 2001.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Scrimshaw is the name of the art that includes the carving of intricate and elaborate pictures on bones, whale teeth and sometimes the tusks of walruses. Mostly done by whalers, the carvings are normally then highlighted by adding pigments. It is believed that this art form had it’s heyday in the early 1800’s and survives today at the hands of a few hobbyists. The carvings are very sought after by collectors and can bring in tens of thousands of dollars. In September of 2005 we carried an article in our NOVA-Antiques Newsletter about carved whale tooth that brought in more than $270,000. This week, Sotheby’s announced the sale of another whales tooth.

This carving was done by William A. Gilpin and was actually signed. According to Sotheby’s this was important because other works belonging to this sailor could now be authenticated. Other examples of his existing works only contained the name of his ship, Ceres and the letter A. On this particular carving, one side of the whale tooth depicts the artist’s ship at sea on rolling waves of water. The other side of the tooth depicts a man in a tie holding his hat aloft and his hair blowing in the wind. The banner reads, “Free Trade and Sailor’s Rights.” Estimated to sell for $40,000 to $60,000, this whales tooth brought in $98,500.

Friday, September 26, 2008

In Australia this week, an amateur film of Marilyn Monroe fetched a cool $16,000 at Leski’s Auction. The short two and a half minute film showed Monroe while on the set of the movie Some Like it Hot. The film was shot by a friend of the actress and also showed Tony Curtis and Billy Wilder who co-starred in that 1959 picture. Marilyn Monroe memorabilia is a hot commodity and very sought after. This is the second homemade film of the actress that has surfaced this year. The other film showing Monroe engaged in a sex act with an unknown man sold at auction for more than $1.5 million.

Meanwhile, a sapphire and diamond brooch belonging to singer Elton John failed to sell at an auction in England. Valued at close to $25,000, the art deco brooch which is shaped like a “J” was worn by the Sir Elton in his music video titled, I Don’t Wanna Go Out With You Like That, in 1988. In published reports before the auction, Bonham’s reportedly said that they were not worried about economic conditions for this sale because, “Diamonds have an enduring appeal.” After the brooch failed to sell, other reports on the Internet said that auction bosses blamed the current turbulent economic climate.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Recently I have written articles about memorabilia being sold at auction from major league sports venues including Yankee Stadium, Shea Stadium and the RCA Dome. One piece in particular mentioned the upcoming sale of memorabilia from Buffalo Memorial Auditorium affectionately known to Western New Yorkers as The Aud. Although the venue may not be as famous to outsiders as Yankee Stadium and the RCA Dome, The Aud has many wonderful memories for people from the area.

Aside from being the former home of the NHL Buffalo Sabres, The Aud was used to showcase many concerts, political rallies and many other sporting events. After the Buffalo Sabres built the HSBC Arena, The Aud became expendable and will be demolished soon. The City of Buffalo finally announced this week that memorabilia from The Aud will go on sale at a two day festival set for November 15 and 16, 2008 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center in Buffalo, New York. Among the many items that will be auctioned off will be sets of the blue seats. Those who have moved out of the area and cannot attend in November, need not despair. More memorabilia will be available in an online auction a week after the event.

The event itself is being organized by Showcase Sports Marketing and will be called “Farewell Old Friend.” More information will be forthcoming on as site they have set up at audfarewell.com

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Many years ago, when I owned a shop in Buffalo, New York, a friend whom I had met at an auction came by and asked me if I would deliver some things he had bought at auction. He told me that he had bought the contents of an unpaid storage unit and needed to get some big items home. In return for my help in delivering his goods, I could have whatever was left in the storage unit. I agreed after he told me that the unit contained clean used furniture. He had bought the contents of the unit at auction only because he wanted some chairs that were in there. It was a win win situation, because the cache I got out of the storage unit amounted to thousands of dollars in free furniture, which I quickly sold. When you buy the contents of a storage unit at auction, you just never know what you are going to end up with.

This week, Edward Howard purchased the contents of a storage unit at auction and ended up with a cache of former NFL football star Michael Vick memorabilia. According to wordpress.com, the storage unit in Williamsburg, Virginia went unpaid and Ironbound Road Mini Storage decided to sell off its contents. Edward Howard, although skeptical at first about it actually being Vick’s storage unit, purchased the contents and to his surprise found that it did indeed contain Vick’s property. Mostly, it was property that was given as presents to Michaels son, Mitez. Inside the storage unit were a signed football, signed pictures and books and Michael Vick flags. Unlike me however, Howard has said that he will give the contents back to Vick after he is released from prison.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Aprons have been cooks’ companions for hundreds of years. Indeed, aprons were used by men and women for a variety of tasks long before they were seen on 1950s television. During this era, women were portrayed as homemakers and good mothers and you rarely saw them without their aprons. Some researchers point to Biblical references about aprons. They cite a passage in which Adam and Eve sewed together fig leaves to make aprons to cover themselves. We traditionally think of aprons being used for cooking, and while that is true, they have served as a cover-up for other tasks that tend to be messy. Occupations such as butchers, welders and bakers have always used aprons to protect both their clothing and bodies from their work.

For centuries, homemakers have used aprons. Even since the early 19th century, women have used aprons to keep their clothing clean. They have also used aprons to carry essential utensils such as rolling pins, for gathering and carrying eggs and for transporting kindling wood. Aprons have been an effective tool for many, many years. It was not until the 1940s and 1950s that society started to see the stereotypes of the ""perfect mother"" who always wore an apron, no matter what. Until that time, aprons were thought of as a functional piece of the wardrobe.

Today’s aprons are more stylish. Perhaps surprisingly, aprons have made a fashionable comeback, even making occasional runway appearances in the form of the apron dress. You can find aprons at Aprons Info.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

It wasn’t until 1844 that the first mass marketable barometer was made in France, but the barometer has a much longer history than that. The first mercury barometer was invented by a student of Galileo named Torricelli in 1643. After much research and development by scientists and weathermen, the antique mercury barometer was used to predict changing weather patterns. During the 1700’s many stick barometers were made. These were nothing more than a glass tube with mercury inside and a scale either engraved on a piece of wood or paper scale attached to the wood. Due to the mercury that these antique barometers contain, collectors must use caution when handling them. As a matter of fact, the CDC issued a warning in June of 2007 about these types of antiques.

During the Victorian period, many cabinet makers and clock designers started making elaborate wooden cases for barometers. The wooden cases are often works of art themselves and can bring in thousands of dollars at auction. Many of the antique barometers that we see from this period are in the familiar banjo shape and made of different woods including rosewood and mahogany. After 1844, aneroid (without liquid) barometers were made by many manufacturers and sold on the open market. These barometers are considered safer because they contained no mercury and better because they were smaller, accurate and were more portable. By the late 1800’s mercury barometers were a thing of the past.

I was reading an old article the other day about a chair that was sold by Cottone Auctions, near Rochester, New York. According to the article the chair which was expected to bring in about $30,000 at auction was actually sold for close to $200,000. Normally, this would not have been unusual if it had been a chair made by Stickley, Wright or Morris, but the maker of the chair was Charles Rohlfs. What intrigued me more was that the article said that Rohlfs was originally from the west side of Buffalo, in the same area where I grew up. I had never heard of him, so I started doing a little research and found an interesting story.

Charles Rohlfs (1853-1936) was born in Brooklyn and studied at Cooper Union and after graduation did some acting. According to some published reports, his acting was awful and he received horrifying reviews from the press. However as a result he met Anna Katherine Green, at the time a best selling crime novelist who was seven years his senior. Before his father in law agreed to their marriage, Rohlfs first had to give up acting. We don’t know how true that may be, but they married in 1884, moved to Buffalo, New York and soon thereafter Rohlfs began designing furniture.

Being one of the most creative craftsmen of the Art & Crafts movement, Rohlfs designs were a bit off when compared to the works of other famous makers of that movement. While others were using simple lines, Rohlfs was using simple lines ornamented with carvings and a mix of styles that set him apart from the rest. Working in the attic of his home at 26 Highland Avenue, Rohlfs created some of the most sophisticated yet creative furniture of the time. Rohlfs then built a mission style home at 156 Park Street in Buffalo, opened a furniture design studio and became world renowned for his abilities. In the early 1900’s, Rohlfs was made a member of the Royal Society of the Arts in London, and later commissioned to provide chairs for Buckingham Palace.

Charles Rohlfs artistic flair and individualistic design can be seen at his mission style home in Buffalo as well as an upcoming 2009 exhibition that will be traveling around the country.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

The McKinley Tariff Act of 1891 required that all merchandise manufactured outside of the United States be marked or labeled with the country of manufacture. From 1891 to 1921 many items that were manufactured in Japan were branded with the word Nippon. However, in 1921 the United States government decided that merchandise coming from Japan had to be marked as such, even though Nippon means the source of the rising and son and it is what the Japanese call their country. Merchandise labeled or branded Nippon from that era however has become increasingly collectible and valuable depending on it design.

Although Japan had a long history of producing porcelain, the porcelain marked Nippon was strictly produced for import into the United States and the west. Because Japan did not have counterfeit or copyright laws and they were trained by westerners from other countries, they were able to produce items that were very close in quality and likeness to many other manufacturers of the time, including Beleek and Limoges. Antique Nippon china and porcelain is usually hand painted and very ornately decorated and designed. While elaborate pieces of Nippon are bringing in top dollar, pieces with less design and a lot of white space are bringing in less money.

People also are being cautious because of the amount of fake and reproduction Nippon china available on the open market. According to reports, the fakes first started appearing in the 1980’s with fake stamps bearing a familiar wreath known to Nippon collectors. The more savvy collectors can tell the difference between the fake and the real stamp, but many people cannot and they purchased the fakes. Other companies started reproducing merchandise using actual molds. Most collectors however can tell the difference by the way the porcelain looks and feels and most of these newer reproductions do not bear the proper stamp or label.

Monday, September 15, 2008

In case you haven’t noticed, I love glass, especially art glass. My favorite is probably Murano Art Glass because it is not only colorful but it comes in so many shapes and sizes and the lines on this art glass are just beautiful. I have never found a piece of Murano Art Glass that I didn’t like. On the other hand, my least favorite is Goofus glass, even the name sounds, well goofy.

Goofus glass is pressed glass that was painted while the glass was cold. When you find this type of glass, in a lot of cases, you will find that the paint flakes or chips off and makes it look cheap. The old saying, “If you buy quality now, it will still be quality in the future,” is definitely true in this case. In the early 20th Century, when Goofus glass was produced, it was made very cheaply and it was used as premiums or give-away with soap or at carnivals, it is sort of the predecessor for Carnival glass. Companies that produced this type of glass included Indiana Glass, Dugan Diamond and Northwood. Although it is not my favorite glass, Goofus glass is still highly sought after by some collectors, especially those items made by Northwood.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

In the August 24, 2006 NOVA-Antiques Newsletter, we talked about utensils (egg cups) that have become very collectible. Butter molds are from the same family (utensils), in that they were originally intended for home use, and not intended as the pricey collectible items that they have become. Originally used by women to adorn their dinner tables, the butter molds later were used by farmers to differentiate their product from others, thus becoming a marketing tool.

There are many types of butter molds, with many different origins and designs. First there is the hand carved wooden molds used by the farmers in the late 1700-1800’s. Later butter molds were made by machine. Although both are very collectible, obviously the older wooden ones are the most sought after and the most expensive for collectors. Many of the wooden butter molds are intricately carved, which drives the price even higher.

Murano Art Glass has been produced on the Venetian island of Murano since about the 13th Century. Afraid that glass foundries would one day burn their city down, Venetian officials banned the glass makers and many moved to the island of Murano. Since then, many art glass manufacturers including Seguso, Barbini, Somerso, Barovier & Toso and Venini have been making some of the most beautiful art glass in the world. To this day, the glass artisans on the island are using the ancient techniques and craftsmanship to follow the traditions of the old masters.

No matter you’re partly politics or whom you decide to vote for in the November election for President of the United States, history will be made, thus started my NOVA-Antiques Newsletter Article on September 5, 2008. The article talked about political memorabilia and its worth in years to come because of the historical significance of this upcoming election. What I didn’t know at the time was that a new Sarah Palin action doll manufactured by Herobuilders.com was going to come along and take the political memorabilia market by storm. Reports on the Internet have stated that thousands of the dolls have been sold.

The dolls, which can cost up to 29.95, come in three different poses in different outfits, including Super Action Hero Palin, School Girl Palin and the plain Sarah Palin action figure. However, all the dolls have the same Palin hairdo and glasses. I have to say that I find that the Vice Presidential nominee’s doll does not do her any justice, whether that was intentional or not I guess we will never know. What is known is that if the company has received thousands of orders for the doll and they don’t cap their sales at some point or come up with a special edition with limited numbers the dolls will probably not have a lot of value in the future. Although a great novelty item and conversation starter, you'll be able to stick the Palin doll in the worthless collectible drawer.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Recently I wrote an article about the City of Buffalo announcing that they are seeking an auction company to sell off Buffalo Memorial Auditorium memorabilia. I said it would be sad to see the old place go. Many other fans will feel the same way this week with the announcement of the Shea Stadium memorabilia auction and the upcoming RCA Dome memorabilia auction. Shea Stadium in New York is where the Major League Baseball New York Mets play. The RCA Dome is where the Payton Manning threw many of his touchdown passes in the National Football League. In an era of better stadiums to make players and owners richer, both of those venues are being torn down.

The sale of Shea Stadium memorabilia began today and continues throughout the weekend. Everything at the stadium is being offered for sale including seats, banners, signs, dugout and even the escalators. The kicker here is that in order to bid or buy any of these items you must first join the club. MeiGray Group who is running the sale of memorabilia is first selling, for $2,500 - $10,000 Premiere Club memberships that will allow you a chance at first dibs on the merchandise. They have three levels Platinum, Gold and Silver. The money you pay is being called a minimum purchase deposit and although non-refundable, will be used towards any purchases you make.

On September 24, 2008, the roof of the RCA Dome, which was built in 1984, in Indianapolis, Indiana, will be deflated. After it is completely deflated, the roof will be cut into small pieces and sold as memorabilia along with other memorabilia that is being salvaged within the stadium walls. For about $60 you can obtain a piece of the RCA Dome roof on a plaque from the Colts Pro Shop. Apparently they are also auctioning off items although when I checked out the site recently, there was nothing listed on their auction page. After the roof is gone and everything else is stripped and dismantled, the upper level is going to be imploded. And another great venue in the history of sports and will be gone forever.

Looking for Shabby Chic furniture and decorative arts? Look no further than the Aldie Antiques Market on Saturday, September 13, 2008. This market that is sponsored in part by Bella Villa Furnishings is located at 39317 Mosby Highway (Route 50) in Aldie, Virginia, right outside Washington, DC. The market is usually held on the second Saturday of each month and not only features shabby chic furnishings but many antiques, vintage collectibles and decorative arts.

Held in the beautiful Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, Maryland, the Shaker Forest Festival features many gifted artisans and a fun atmosphere for the entire family. There are many demonstrations from woodworkers, soap makers, potters and metal workers using many of the tools and technology that the Shakers invented. The festival is held 10 am to 6 pm on Saturday and Sunday, September 13 & 14, 2008 as well as on September 20 & 21, 2008. There is plenty of free parking and shuttle service, prize giveaways and unique food and beverages. There are also new artists on both weekends of the festival.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

I have written about how only dumb thieves steal art in the past but it their just doesn’t seem to be a shortage of dumb crooks in this world. The fact that artwork is recognizable, identifiable or harder to sell than other things does not stop those with a low IQ and the irrational thought that they could make quick money. Now police in Los Angeles are offering a reward and looking for the person or people that were dumb enough to steal a cache of specialized artwork that included paintings by Gorky, Soutine, Chagall and Diego Rivera. Experts have said that some of the paintings are worth more than $4 million.

The owners of the stolen art cache were in another part of the house when this theft occurred and police speculate that the thieves must have worked very quickly to remove the paintings by a side door. They also believe that the thieves may have been familiar with the couple’s routine. The sophistication and the smartness of the art thieves themselves will be evident when, not if, the artwork is recovered. The artwork will be recovered either at a flea market or when someone tries to sell it in Europe ten years from now. The authorities have contacted all of the major auction houses, show promoters, art dealers and others to be on the lookout for the paintings. A $200,000 reward has been offered.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Lucien Freud paintings have been bringing in record auction prices for the past couple of years. Christie’s in London is reporting that this trend will probably continue on October 19, 2008 when Freud’s portrait of Sir Francis Bacon goes on the auction block. The unfinished painting, which he painted in 1956, is expected to bring in more than $12 million. This is one of two paintings that Lucien painted of his friend Bacon, the first painting has been missing with its whereabouts unknown. Pilar Ordovas, head of contemporary art at Christie’s was recently quoted by Reuters Life! Saying, “Lucien Freud and Francis Bacon are widely considered to be the most important British artists of the 20th Century.”

Lucien Freud was born in Berlin, Germany in 1922 to Ernst and Lucie. Lucien is the grandson of renowned psychiatrist Sigmund Freud, who founded the Psychoanalytic School of Psychology. In 1933, Lucien’s family moved to England. He studied at the Central School of Art in London, East Anglican School of Painting and Drawing and Goldsmiths College at the University of London. Early in his carrier, Freud was associated with the surrealist movement but in the 1950’s turned to portraits, many of them nudes as he tried to capture a subjects history and sensuality in his brushstrokes. In May of 2008 his nude portrait of friend and model Sue Tilley titled Benefits Supervisor Sleeping sold at Christie’s for $33.6 million and set the record for a living artist.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Pocillovy is the act of collecting egg cups. An egg cup is a container used for serving boiled eggs. Although not much used in the United State, egg cups still remain popular at the breakfast tables in Europe. There are many types of egg cups, some are footies, which means they have a wide base, others are know as buckets, which do not have a pedestal. They can be made of many materials including wood, glass, plastic, porcelain or metals.

The earliest images of egg cups appear in a Turkish mosaic dating to about 3AD and examples were found among the Pompeii ruins of 79AD. It wasn’t until the late 1800’s that egg cups were produced as individual pieces of dinnerware and in most cases, silver egg cups were gilded on the inside. These early examples of egg cups are very hard to come by because they were used as everyday dinnerware and often got chipped or broken. The Wabash egg cup pictured above sold on eBay for over $760.00.

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Pairpoint, the company that has been crafting beautiful art glass for over one hundred years was a merger between two companies, Mount Washington Glass Company and Pairpoint Silver Company. They merged in 1894 to become Pairpoint and a derivative of the company still does business today in Pairpoint Glass Works in Sagamore, Massachusetts. The original company produced hand blown art glass lamp shades as well as cut glass lamps. However, the glass that most people associate with Pairpoint as well as other companies of the time comes from the American Brilliant period, the mid 19th Century to the early 20th Century.

Many companies including Pairpoint produced what is sometimes known as ABCG glass (American Brilliant Cut Glass). This type of glass was usually thick and cut in many patterns, with the hobstar being one of the top designs and motifs generated by all the glass houses of the time. A lot of ABCG collectors favor the signed pieces, especially those by Libbey and Hawkes as well as pieces that were named for American statesmen. ABCG can ranges in price from relatively inexpensive to very expensive. A ruby cut glass wine goblet in the Lincoln Pattern once sold at a Christie’s auction for close to $23,000.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Looking on eBay recently I spotted a cookie jar up for auction that was billed as a McCoy Pottery Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar. Is this a real McCoy Pottery cookie jar or a fake? McCoy Pottery was started in 1910 by the father and son team of Nelson and J.W. McCoy in Roseville, Ohio. In the mid-1920’s, they started producing and selling art pottery. However, most experts agree that McCoy Pottery never produced a Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar. So the cookie jar on eBay was a fake and even included a fake McCoy mark on the bottom of the jar. In this case, there is no real McCoy. The original Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar which is also the most sought after and most valuable was produced by Hull Pottery and Regal China.

The Hull Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar was patented by Louise Bauer of Zanesville, Ohio in 1943. The cookie jar blanks were produced by Hull Pottery but then shipped to Regal China for painting, glazing and decorating. Later, Regal China began producing their own Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar. This causes quite a bit of confusion as to who made which cookie jar, especially since the red glaze used in both the Hull Pottery cookie jar and the Regal China cookie jar are the same. Sometimes the best way to tell if you have an authentic cookie jar is by looking at the measurements. The Hull Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar measured 13 inches tall and weighed 5.6 ounces. According to published reports, a Hull Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar is worth from $250 to $375 depending on condition.

Addis E. Hull founded the Hull Pottery, which specialized in stoneware, in Zanesville, Ohio in 1905. In 1907, they acquired Acme Pottery, which specialized in semi-porcelain dinnerware. With this acquisition, Hull was able to diversify into other products which included planters, art pottery and tiles in addition to using state of the art airbrush techniques and glazes to set themselves apart. After a flood that destroyed the plant in 1950, they rebuilt and again re-equipped with the latest technology. They were successful through the mid-1970’s with their dinnerware and floristware products but had to close their doors in 1985. Hull products however have become very collectible and enjoy a wide audience with Little Red Riding Hood leading the way.

Almost half a million dollars was brought in by the guitar that was infamously set on fire onstage by Jimi Hendrix. The guitar, a Fender Stratocaster, was set aflame at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 and was expected to bring in closer to $900,000. The guitar was the highlight of the auction by The Fame Bureau an auction house in London, England. In addition to the Hendrix guitar, Elvis Presley’s fingerprints on a concealed gun application went for close to $82,000 and a copy of the Beatles first contract with Brian Epstein sold for over $400,000.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

A rare set of James Bond, 007 novels and other memorabilia sold today for a reported $55,800 in Edinburgh, Scotland. The books and memorabilia, which were originally owned by the late Sir Fitzroy Maclean, were purchased by John Gilbert who is writing a book about author Ian Fleming. It is widely believed that the fictional James Bond character is closely modeled by Sir Fitzroy Maclean, who was a soldier and diplomat, and was stationed in Moscow in the late 30’s.

Ian Lancaster Fleming was an author and journalist who served time in the British Navy during World War II. He wrote and is best remembered for writing twelve James Bond novels and nine short stories. Born in Mayfair, London, Fleming was educated at Eton and then went on to the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, Munich University and the University of Geneva in Switzerland. While serving in the war he was promoted to Commander. In 1953 he wrote his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale, in which a lot of the background came from his work in the intelligence field.

Sir Fitzroy Maclean was born on March 11, 1911 and served as a soldier and politician. After Eton, he studied at King’s College and Cambridge University. In 1933 he joined the England’s diplomatic service and in 1939 was stationed in Moscow. He used his exploits in Moscow to write an autobiography titled Eastern Approaches. In 1941 he left the Diplomatic Corp and entered the Army as an enlisted man, but later became a commissioned officer. He saw acion in Northern Africa and Yugoslavia. Sir Fitzroy Mclean passed away in June 1996.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

It’s that time of the year again when parents are looking forward to their kids returning to school and kids dreading the idea of having to return after having fun all summer. Although a lot of children brave the lunches by buying them in the cafeteria, a lot of others bring the good old standby, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, from home. How they carry those lunches to school is one of those things that epitomizes “the more things change, the more things stay the same” saying.

In the early 1900’s lunch boxes were metal pails or re-used (read recycled) tin cans that formerly held biscuits, tobacco or sweets. As time progressed, the tin containers evolved into what most of us remember as being the box with our favorite cartoon, TV and movie characters and a matching thermos to hold our milk. One of my most memorable boxes had none other than the robot and Will Robinson from the Lost in Space television series. Some of these boxes have become very collectible today and are worth hundreds if not thousands of dollars.Nowadays kids carry their lunches to school in insulated lunch totes of many different shapes, sizes and colors. Some are made of plastic or metal and some are even vinyl. However, the one thing that remains the same is that these are designed with today’s cartoon, TV and movie characters including Hello Kitty, Harry Potter and Shrek. The good news for collectors is that some of these new lunch totes are being made in limited quantities or limited editions and which will make them collectible in the future.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Many people collect many things. Collecting is when you seek, get, organize and display whatever it is you like to collect. Some collectors collect stamps, coins, political memorabilia others collect beanie babies, porcelain or glass bells or vintage art glass. A collection may include antiques, vintage collectibles, modern collectibles or a combination of all, depending on taste and interests. Some collections, such as fine art collections, may worth millions of dollars while other collections may have more sentimental value than monetary value.

This week, Outasite!! Collectibles is featuring vintage porcelain and glass bells. Vintage bell collectors usually collect bells depending on what their interests are. For example, some bell collectors may collect memorabilia from certain cities, towns or places they have visited, such as Las Vegas. Others may collect anything with Currier & Ives scenery, Japanese Satsuma Pottery or Fenton art glass. Some bell collectors are just bell collectors and collect all types of bells. Collectible bells also vary in price, from a few dollars to several thousands of dollars. We saw one example of an antique silver bell recently sell on eBay for more than $11,000.